Childish Tantrum
by The Interference
Summary: 'Harry has had it. If Voldemort wanted to screw up his mind, he better be ready to get his screwed up in return.' A butterfly's flap of wings can cause a storm in Africa. A few variables changed can affect an entire universe. In which Harry has a childish tantrum and reads an Occlumency book. Good!Dark Side. Also "Crack Treated Seriously".
1. Chapter 1: Childish

**Hi there. This is my first no-pairing story and I'm damn proud of this because this is the first time I have written a chapter this long. Please enjoy! I placed an easter egg at the start of it. (My first use of it)**

 **!Warning!: Some vulgar language, Good!DarkSide, Evil!Dumbledore**

* * *

 _ **Childish Tantrum**_

 _Chapter "1": Childish (Prologue)_

"Harry, this is ridiculous -while I approve of this- your reasoning is so childish!"

Harry was currently going through the 'number one' Occlumency book in the Restricted Section.

"Why? I finally learning something, Hermione. _Willingly_. Wasn't that what you wanted since our first year? Why does it matter that I do it to break Voldemort's mind?"  
"People don't gain knowledge to bother others, Harry!"

"They do," He said, his face disbelieving. "Voldemort does, Snape does, Malfoy does; hell, even Muggles do! Haven't you seen those villains in the telly? Face it, Herm, people often do things to disturb some poor guy's eternal peace. I'm just doing it to a Dark Lord who named himself after a French phrase." She blinked slowly.

"Wait, French... _What_?"  
"You know that Professor Dumbledore and I meet occasionally every year, right?" Hermione nodded as she narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "He said that Voldemort meant 'Flight Of Death' in French."  
"Ah, that's... _terribly_ coincidental." Harry huffed, his eyes regaining the irritated look he had lost during the conversation. He began to drum his fingers on the cover of 'Forbidden Practices Encyclopedia.' "If Voldemort wants to screw up my mind, he better get ready to get _his_ screwed up in return."

"But Harry!" Hermione interjected. "He is _way_ ahead of you! How in Merlin's name do you expect to be his equal in _Legilimency_ , when he has years of experience over you? Not to mention his mind is impenetrable! Even Headmaster Dumbledore can't use mind magic on him!" Harry scowled and averted his eyes.

"I don't know." He told her. Just as she was about to criticise him again he continued, "But I know that I can do anything if I put my mind to it. After all, I survived the Killing Curse, how difficult can this be compared to _that_?"

* * *

"Apparently _very_ difficult." Harry spoke to himself in the old library.

To attempt Occlumency, one needed to 'clear their mind' and then 'throw the intruder out of their mindscape by mere will power.' But that was the problem. Even the best owl-ordered books didn't explain what the person who practiced Occlumency needed to do to _clear their mind_.

' _Shit, this is just a dead-end street. No book has what I need.'_

 _What_ was he missing?

Just as he was about to dive through the massive mountain of mind magic books, he heard a shout addressed to him and an aggressive shushing whisper -Probably from Librarian Pince-. When he turned his head to look at the disturbance from among the dusty pile, what he first noticed was orange.

"Ron? What're you doing here?" He asked quizzically. Why would Ron visit the library?

The answer came almost instantly. 'Hermione must have told him to.'

"Hermione said that you were hanging out with books in here since Friday night."He flopped down on the seat next to him and began going through his pockets until his freckled hand was thrust into Harry's face, holding a shiny purple and gold wrapper. "I brought you chocolate frogs." Harry snatched the treat and gave Ron a crooked grin, "Thanks mate." Then he began telling his tale: the lessons with Snape, the visions of the narrow corridor with that single door, the pain in his scar, _everything_. And, of course, his current predicament.

"I don't know what I'm doing wrong," He was saying. "I've tried everything! But every book has the same thing Snape said: 'clear your mind'. What the bloody hell does that mean? None of the books will tell me!"

"Hey buddy," Ron interrupted him while munching on his share of chocolate. "You know what I think?" He inquired, fanning himself with a copy of 'Mind Shield 101 For Dummies' using one hand. "What?"

"You should loosen up and burn those books if they agitate you that much." Harry raised a brow in a similar fashion to his Potions' Professor.

"Wow, Ron, 'agitate' is such a _big_ word, where'd you learn it?" His ginger-haired friend frowned and playfully punched his shoulder.

"I'm serious though, if the books don't have what you need, you just gotta do it your way. They don't write these to teach _you_ , right? You don' need to do anything they say." Harry was speechless against his best friend's momentary wisdom. It was very unlike Ron to give others sensible advice instead of receiving it.

"Thanks." He simply responded.

* * *

Harry was attempting Legilimency without eye-contact.

He couldn't drive Voldemort mad if he had to look into the slimy snake's eyes all the time. And anyway, hadn't _he_ read Harry's mind in his first year through a turban without his wand? That meant it could be done both _wandlessly_ and without eye-contact, right?

Well, it didn't matter. Harry had to do it even if it was impossible.

His guinea pig (He didn't mean it as a pun) was Ron for the time being. But for some reason, no matter what he did, he couldn't intrude upon his mind. It made the situation even degrading because Ron didn't have a miniscule amount of Occlumency skill.

"Come _on_ , Harry," He whined as Harry threw himself to the fluffy red-gold sofa. "You gotta think simple. You're making everything harder by thinking too hard."

"How in blazes am I making it harder?" He asked him, incredulous.

"Well, uh..." Ron sat beside him. "The manual tells you to... send a beam or some shit like that, yeah?"

"Yeah?"

"Say, what would happen if you sent that beam with your wand and then put it down?"

"Ron, you aren't making any sense, that beam would dissolve the moment I let go of the wand."

" **What** are you two _doing_?"

Both of them turned their heads to the door and saw Hermione coming through the Fat Lady's Portrait. "Legilimency doesn't work like that, Ronald. You have to feed that beam a steady flow of magic to make it work. Not only that, but if you don't keep the amount balanced, it won't work at all and the connection will collapse." She lectured with her hands on her hips. Ron jumped on his feet and declared passionately, "Mione! You're a genius!" Pale pink dusted her cheeks and all she could manage to utter was a 'What-' before his dense friend took over and began explaining his outburst.

"I think I know just _why_ Harry sucks at mind reading!" 'Legilimency.' Harry's mind corrected but listened to him anyway. "He's putting too much magic to it! You know, when we started I just thought he wasn't trying enough but he's probably trying too much. You said that the... dunno, beam-connect or somethin', had to be balanced right? It's like medium amount, not too much and not too little, isn't it?" Hermione looked surprised and nodded, "Yes, Ron, it's exactly like that. Did you perhaps hear that from your mother?" His ears reddened as he spoke,

"Yeah. What are we gonna do now, though? Harry, mate, what're you gonna do?"

Harry rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. Hermione -God bless her-, seeing that he was in a tight spot, swiftly saved him. "You need to familiarize yourself with the feel of magic." She told him. "When you do and when you try Legilimency after that, I'M sure it will come to you a lot easier."

So began the magical variation of 'Harry-Hunting'.

* * *

 **Did you like it? I hope you did cause I had to spend all my spare time from homework to write this. Have you found the reference? It was pretty subtle, though...**

 **See you next time! I'll be popping in occasionaly!**

 **- _Int._**


	2. ATTENTION!

ATTENTION!

This story has 6 chapters in Archive Of Our Own, named under the same name by my AO3 account Snowy_Rain. I've been updating ever since June there. I don't think I'll continue this in but who knows, maybe I will. I just don't feel like dealing with my account here.

Thank you for following and favoriting this story! It warms my heart that there are still people who read this!

-Int


	3. And for the curious- THE TAGS!

_**TAGS OF THIS STORY ON ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN:**_

 _Rating:_

Teen And Up Audiences

 _Archive Warning:_

Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

 _Category:_

Gen

 _Fandom:_

Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling

 _Characters:_

Harry Potter Hermione Granger Ron Weasley Tom Riddle | Voldemort Regulus Black Sirius Black Dolores Umbridge Draco Malfoy Severus Snape Bellatrix Black Lestrange Lucius Malfoy Narcissa Black Malfoy Albus Dumbledore Basilisk (Harry Potter) The Brazilian Boa Constrictor (Harry Potter)

 _Additional Tags:_

Occlumency, Harry has a brain, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence ,Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Magical Artifacts, Magic, magic everywhere, Dark Magic But Not, Mind Linkİ Telepathic Bond, Harry Doesn't Understand Occlumency, Neither do I, Bad Dumbledore, kind of, Who knows what I'm doing, I'm kinda rolling with the onslaught of ideas, This is basically my magic theory dump, My First Work in This Fandom, Officially anyway, Attention to Regulus Black, I've got BIG plans for him, Like GIGANTIC PLANS, Yall gonna shit yourselves, Weird Plot Shit, Accidental Plot, This Is Not Going To Go The Way You Think, Oh God Yes, Oh My God, what the fuck, cliches not being cliches, Im using real witchcraft here, please correct me if Im wrong witchblr, Please Don't Hate Me, Forgive Me, Senpai Notice Me, seriously drakie poo hes like "POTHEAD NOTICE ME", you'll see - Freeform, I MADE A PLOT CHANGE AT THE LAST SECOND, im trash, lol kill me, questionable use of mythology, Apple Tree Man Adaptation, I just wrote that, shakespeare slang, Like I said YALL GONNA SHIT YERSELVES, Im deliberately complicating the plot, Draco Malfoy Redemption Arc, it has started, but barely, OmG hOw DiD tHiS tUrN tO aNgSt, But light angst, Light Angst, Humor, Crack Treated Seriously, Swearing, Basilisk - Freeform, Chamber of Secrets, Order of the Phoenix (Harry Potter), Alternate Universe - Witchcraft, Hermione is all proper with language, Ron Weasley Is Clueless, Lol it's not Ginny, ur wrong, I'm Going to Hell, I'm Not Ashamed, Duelling, this turned into angst real fast, Eventual Happy Ending, This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, Don't Examine This Too Closely, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Roller Coaster, Hermione knows memes lmao, Dank Meme, Oh worm, Birds, yeah you just read that, S, Magic Made Them Do It, Lol its more like Dead!Dumbledore than anything else, Minor Albus Dumbledore/Gellert Grindelwald, But its not even mentioned, But I might mention it at some point so be careful, Could Be Canon, Maybe - Freeform, Not Beta Read, Excessive Swearing, Vulgar Language

 _Language:_

English


	4. Chapter 2: Curious

**For some of you that do not want to or can't go to AO3 for the story (thank to reveress-plague for this) here are the current chapters. Chapter 7 is halfway done, expect it in a week! (I'm posting the other chapters as well) Anyway, on with the story! (Lmao the ones who think it's gonna be hilarious you have no idea, in AO3 I put "Crack Treated Seriously" into the tags) Enjoy :))))))**

* * *

" _Harry,_ " Hermione whines exasperatedly. "I'm sorry. Come out now."

" ** _No_**." Harry rejects. He casts a Protego over his comforter wrapped around him. "They are _savage_. Did you turn them to werevolves? Did you Imperio everyone? Did you feed them _vampire blood_ _? Can't you see they're bloodthirsty vultures?!_ " Hermione's eyebrow twitches and she loses control.

"Oh Merlin's _soggy beard_ , HARRY THEY ARE JUST PRANKING YOU!"

" _YOU ASKED THEM TO PRANK ME!"_

"DO YOU WANT TO SCREW VOLDEMORT'S MIND UP OR NOT?!"

* * *

Let's go back to the beginning. Harry, upon Hermione's offer of tutoring and help, decides that he will do anything to make Voldemort's life a living hell. Hermione's eyes glint a tad _too_ bright. Maybe that was the first clue he had missed.

The next day, he sees something new on the noticeboard.

 _"PRANK HARRY POTTER MONTH_

 _'Tired of dealing with his moping and sighes?_

 _Just irritated with him?_

 _Have a crush on him?_

 _Hate his guts?'_

 _'No matter what you think of him, it's PRANK THE POTTER Month!'_

 _'As long as it's nothing that includes homicide, dismemberment, abduction, permanent scarring, severe injuries, incurable diseases-' "_

The list went for two paragraphs.

" '-then you are free to prank this Gryffindor however you want! Countdown starts:' "

There actually _was_ an animated countdown at the bottom of the poster. Unfortunately for him, it was set to end in thirteen minutes, which meant he would be at Poitons with the Slytherins eagerly waiting to turn him into their toy.

" 'All questiones will be answered by Hermione Granger.' "

He dryly thanked her after the classes ended.

The problem was, _everyone_ wanted to mess with him, whether they were First Years or even Sixth.

Hermione told him that he was lucky Seventh Years were too busy with their N.E.W.T.s to pay attention to some silly event and that they were learning Advanced Human Transfiguration. _Nice._ At least he wouldn't be turned into a pig or something equally insulting.

At the end of the fifth day, it was obvious who had the upper hand.

He was... _surprised_ , to see so many spells together and used to creatively. When he had come to Hogwarts, he had been good at practical application of spells, rather than theory. He could cast any spell the First Year curriculum had thrown at him.

Over the years, it had become harder and harder to do so. Then, when he couldn't do it alone in the end, he had remained stagnant.

It wasn't like he _didn't_ like magic or the lessons, it was just that there was always _something_ to discourage him from trying harder, from giving them his all.

And seeing so many people who had been behind him, so improved and surpassing him by a landslide...

It hurt him on a deeper level than he was used to.

* * *

Even so, Hermione ends up throwing the comforter off him and spiriting it away to the Girls' Dormitories.

* * *

Hermione begins tutoring.

"Tell me, Harry, can you feel which spell I am going to cast right now?" she asks, raising an eyebrow and holding her wand in a relaxed grip.

"Uh... no..?" he errs. He didn't even know someone could.

"Well, that's understandable. You see, I have been reading a bunch of books on Magical Theory and Magic Fundamentals. They are both in experimental stage so they are not common knowledge; after all, they were in the Restricted Section." She drones on and on about how fascinating different combinations of the basic moves could be and everything else.

"Hermione, tutoring."

"Oh! Of course-" She takes out a giant satchel filled to the brim and pours out a million books. "-I am ready now!"

Harry can feel the utter despair and hopelessness at the frightening sight. He panics, and from behind that sizable mountain, flails; he is not sure Hermione notices him.

"Can't we study without books?!" He yelps, fearing dying under a pile of misplaced books.

Hermione stares blankly at him.

"Harry..." she starts. "These are notebooks."

"...Oh."

"Empty notebooks."

" _Oh._ "

"Even _I_ can not fill out multiple notebooks in a span of seven days."

She takes out hher quill and ink well.

"No, we are going to _learn the subject_ , together." she finishes.

Harry feels very much afraid right now.

* * *

Scratch that. This is bloody awesome.

"So does that mean there are _infinite_ amount of spells? That doesn't sound very... likely."

"It is not _supposed to_ ," Hermione snaps, sweat gathering on her brow. "That is why it is called _Experimental Magicology._ " She is as worn out as Harry which, theorically, shouldn't be possible. They were reading a few articles and trying to make sense of the few works on the obscure subject.

"It is still in experimental stage," Hermione explains, a little apologetic. "That is why it sounds so implausible. Though, in theory, _every_ little variable changes the spell in entirely numerous little ways. Remember Professor Flitwick's lecture?" She asks. Her eyes shine in nostalgia and enthusiasm. "A simple misspelling of _one vowel_ changes the whole spell structure and then _some_ _!"_

She sounds a whole lot more interested than a few minutes before and, _honestly,_ he can see the appeal. It was the thrill of unearthing an intriguing mystery, an unembarked adventure, creation of miracles in a myriad of mind blowing ways, the carefree joy of breaking down an obstacle in the journey to an efficient spell.

It's power, it's pure, it's improvement and it's unadulterated _enjoyment_.

"Hey... I need to cast this silently don't I..?" His mind is back on track, focused on their goal. "How many variables does that leave?"

"Ah..." She trails off. Hermione's brilliant mind is throughly exhausted at this point, taking in a lifetime of theorization. "Wand movements..?"

"No shit, Sherlock." Harry intones. Hermione gives him the _I'm-Not-Impressed-Stop-That-Immediately-Harry-Potter_ look that was nearly trademarked at this point. They are already past the point of arguing over proper language of British English.

"How about this then-" She inks a diagram onto the parchment. It's the one they had agreed upon earlier. "-Transfigurations requires all the variables, usually. And even when it is silent casting, you are actually chanting the incantation mentally. Charms is same."

Harry was kinda feeling like a mad scientist. "Curses have less variables than _Charms?_ I didn't think I'd ever see the day!"

"I know right!" If he was a mad scientist, Hermione was an _evil queen._

"It is part of the reason I was looking into it! You see; Mind Arts, especially Legilimency, is considered a _Curse_ type spell. That is why it is easier to perform, what with the lack of need for incantations and wand movements. They are of a mostly mental magical casting, it is _ridiculously easy_ to curse someone. How do they even manage to keep people from doing it-"

They both realize her mistake a second too late.

It's Dark Arts.

Harry fidgets in his place, uncomfortable. They are both unsettled. It's messed up, what they're doing. They are just a pair of students; they have no business researching forbidden magic. Yet... _Yet._

They can't stop now.

Harry's in danger. He's endangering everyone in the castle. Voldemort would eventually catch up to what he had been doing this past week and take caution, taking care not to arouse suspicion. He had decided before, his choice hadn't changed. It's scary, _it's frightening_ ; Harry is beside himself with worry. Hermione is worrying for _Harry_. It was a logical decision at the time.

And now, the most logical course of action was to continue till the end.

Whatever that end was.

"Yeah," Harry parrots. "How did they even forbid _Dark Arts?_ It's not like it's gonna _kill_ you or something like that. Of course not."

"Oh no, mighty Lord," Hermione swoons in the most dry fashion Harry's ever seen. "You can imagine not my woes."

It's alright.

* * *

They hang out at the library after lessons, for a few more days.

"Hey, I know we spoke about this before," Hermione enters the conversation, multitasking her Runes homework at the same time. "But have you thought about that focus business?"

"How would I even know how to make some sort of magical ring for myself?" Harry asks her, his eyes questioning and doubtful. He is working on his Tarot assignment, a deck of cards lying around the table.

(He isn't. It's an excuse for their research.)

"You could just take a twig and make it a bracelet-" She finishes with a graceful swipe of her quill, the feather swishing as if it was still a flying bird. "-really, Harry, you do not need to have rare crystals or specific incenses for a purification casting. It is still valid magic if you use a pebble and a blade of grass. Just take a strip of cloth and cleanse it. I'll help you enchant it and you can charge it whenever you need to. It'll only take thirty seconds at most."

They had learned pretty much everything about new theories in developmental stages. They had just taken a few ideas and merged them together. Harry thought it was particularly clever.

"Does wool or cotton really _work?"_ Harry has doubts but can you blame him? Is a bandage the same as a seven galleon wand?

" _YES. IT WORKS. IT'S VALID. IT'S NOT A HOCUS POCUS TRICK. YOU CAN DO IT."_ Hermione gets cranky after a few hours of intense sessions of research. He really can't blame her.

"Say, have you thought about a natural focus?" she asks, holding a ruler in one hand and dragging the quil across the parchment in one graceful movement. It's fluidic, how does she do that?

"Like, how? Technically, isn't everything a natural focus?" he counters, doubtful. They hadn't thought about this before.

"No," Hermione tries to explain all the while keeping her eyes on her runes. "A natural Focus secretes magic without any aid from anything else. Like a Phoenix feather or their tears. Unicorn tail-hairs and dragon heart-strings count as well, which is why they are used in wand-making. Focus building is a slightly different practice, which does not involve the use of tree woods." she recites. "You do not need to charge it or even enchant it -though, it would certainly help- for it to work. Isn't it preferable to taking a piece of cloth and casting spells with it, since your belief is currently _lacking?_ "

Harry nods along to her lecture. She is right, in his opinion. It would save him some energy, too.

"How do we find a natural Focus anyway? I don't think Professor Dumbledore would let us borrow Fawkes…"

 _"You useless excuse of a Slytherin!"_ comes a shout from over the Restricted Section. There are footsteps thundering towards the entrance of the library from there. As a pale blond wisp of hair is seen from the gaps of book shelves, it becomes clear just _who_ the one throwing a tantrum is.

"Malfoy always finds an excuse, does he not?" Hermione inquires quietly as Madam Pince power-walks to give an earful to the slimy brat. "I do not think I have seen him so frustrated since last year, though…"

"Yeah…" Harry agrees. Malfoy is a little shit. His mind automatically conjures a million scenarios in which he would say 'My father will hear about this!' and he just sort of freezes at one thought.

 _He certainly wouldn't mind saying that to a bloody **Basilisk.**_

Oh Merlin.

 _Basilisk._

This was a stupid idea.

"Do you think a Basilisk's corpse is a natural Focus?" he asks, and instantly regrets it.

 _He is a moron._

"Harry, that is-" Hermione cuts herself off, staring a bit into empty space. "-Huh. It might work. You are not half bad at finding ideas. But we need a solid plan for this."

 _He just dug his own grave._

He seems to be doing that a lot these days.


	5. Chapter 3: Unexpectedly Peaceful

"I don't know what I did to deserve this…"

They are crawling along the moss covered earth. Up ahead, there is a weirdly shaped hill with an apple tree at the top.

"Did I accidentally anger some God in a past life? Did I piss of Fate? Maybe I was Morgana leFay and Merlin cursed me."

"You have not finished that Divination assignment, have you?" Hermione asks in a mumble, rubbing the dirt off her trousers as she stands up. She offers her hand to him when they realize Harry's legs have fallen asleep.

"Tarot is such rubbish. It's vague. More vague than all the others 'cause at least you had some dictionary for them. This one's just meaningless. How do you even know what a card says? Wish I had a choice but Trelawney doesn't like clear shit. She wants to blind herself in her incense, I tell you. It's unnecesarily excessive." He winces when his legs become sensitive to touch, tiny pinpricks stabbing every little inch of them. They ache and shake and he _still_ can't feel them standing. "You are so lucky you dropped out. How's Runes?"

"Kind of confusing, to tell the truth," she says as they walk to the hill ahead. "Sometimes the professor gives us tests and we have to analyze rune combinations and guess which ones were used to create it. It is perplexing because there are so many different ways a rune can be fit into them that I ended up being only mediocre in the class." she explains, face free of sadness but eyebrows scowling.

"Oh." Harry makes an uncomfortable sound. "Why don't you drop out then? Doesn't it bother you?" he asks, puzzled. Didn't that sadden her at least some? She gives out a lowkey chuckle and glances at him with something akin to maternal affection in her eyes.

"Harry," she says, chiding. They are at the bottom of the hill now. "You don't have to be the best at it to do something you like."

He processes her words and stops in his tracks. He hadn't thought of it like that. There was truth in what she said.

"Oh." he intones, unsure. Hermione huffs.

"Come on, you dense rock. We have an entrance to find." She waves her vine wand in a small circle, muttering lowly under her breath. A compass appears, pointing straight to the hill's summit, towards the gigantic tree.

It wasn't unlike a skeleton's fine, ash bones. The only sign it was an apple tree and not a horrific object from a nightmare was, in his opinion, the brilliant red fruits it held on its branches, bare of any leaves.

The hill's grass was wet, even though the rest of the forest was dry as a desert. It was as if morning had come earlier, leaving its fresh dew on the green clutter.

"You think the snake had a burrow up there?" Harry asks his friend, who was struggling with holding onto the damp ground.

"I guess." she simply says. She's panting, her palms shine pink in the dim light of the moon. Harry's shoes are about to fall off; Dudley's old pair probably wouldn't survive a climb like this. As he looks below to see their progress, he sees the bottom even closer than before.

 _Is this an enchantment?_

He looks around and then he realizes.

The grass around the hill is wet.

"Hermione!" he yells. "It's no use! Stop!" She doesn't seem like anything could stand in her way and come unscathed, but she listens. She turns her head to him, her eyes are sharp and dark against the call of their pursuit. Hermione's only a silhouette before the pearly moon hanging above.

"Harry?" she enquires, curious, exasperated. She's not the mindless being from before, yet she _is._

 _Who says you can't be both? A monster and a friend?_

He shakes his head to get back on task, and goes on.

"The grass is moving," he informs her, letting go and dropping back onto the forest floor. When he touches the ground, he is startled by the slithering of the grass. Dozens of blades of them are gradually moving upwards to the top of the hill. Hermione is dumbstruck; she jolts when the walking turf reaches her and, most likely accidentally, carries her to their destination. They are both staring at each other, mouth open and eyes awed.

"How- How are you going to come up here?" Hermione wonders aloud, shaken a little. Harry bites his lips.

"Well-" He tucks his wand to his jeans' back pocket. "-the Levitation Charm oughta work, right?"

Her eyes widen and narrow immediately after. She nods, holds her wand tight in her clammy grip and casts with a whisper.

He starts floating to the sky. He loves the feeling of weightlessness and freedom. The air is always so fresh in the Forbidden Forest.

Harry touches down as soft as a feather falling from a twenty feet building. Hermione's shivering, her wand-hand trembles. "You okay?" he asks her promptly, worried.

"Yeah. Yes. I am quite alright, thank you." she is back to herself but Harry's not so sure; he can still see the feverish flush on her face.

Then they hear a yelp.

It comes from the bottom, closer to the ground. They lean over the edge and-

It's Malfoy.

...

 _Of course it's Merlin-damned **Malfoy**._

"Malfoy, what the HECK." Harry shouts, disbelieving. "I know you kinda have a fetish of stalking and tormenting me, but COME ON!"

"SHUT YOUR TRAPS, MUDBLOOD AND POTHEAD! I JUST SPENT THE LAST HOUR TRACKING YOU DOWN IN A FILTHY BLOODY FOREST, I'M NOT GOING BACK NOW!"

"He's not even trying to deny it." Hermione deadpans, entirely too astonished. "Malfoy!" she yells from the top. She gets his attention, fortunately.

"The grass moves! You can not come up like that!"

" _Damn that grass!_ " Malfoy continues still. "Ain't no grass' gonna stop me from wringing your tiny little necks with my bare hands!"

"Hermione, _are you mad?_ " Harry asks, incredulous. "He's gonna see everything!"

"That is what we want-" She takes hold of her wand once again, recovered; she prepares for the spell. "-because he will owe us."

" _What?_ "

She grins and it's a tad too bloodthirsty for Harry's tastes.

"We are visiting _Slytherin's_ chamber. Which Slytherin can claim that they have seen the founder's own creation?"

 _Oh Merlin's holy pants,_ occurs to Harry's mind. _She's turning into one of them!_

"Right." He swallows. "Let's keep an eye on the prick while we take a stroll down in the Chamber of Secrets."

Hermione wastes no time. Unfortunately, Malfoy shoots into the air screaming and flailing without any purpose.

"Let me go, dirty mongrels! My father will-"

"-definately hear about this." Harry finishes for him. "We know. Daddy must be so busy these days, huh?"

Malfoy looks ready to explode the forest itself, the castle, and then, from the shame, himself.

"You-"

"We have a proposal for you." Hermione interjects, cutting him off. Malfoy's mouth snaps shut.

"...State your terms." he demands. His demeanour is defensive, able to escape at a moment's notice. His lips are hard, thin line.

"A tour of the prestigious Chamber of Secrets, in exchange for your silence." she answers, calm. She is confident, her back is straight. Harry knows if anyone can pull this off, it's _her._

Malfoy gawks at her silently, the air around them changing as he shifts. The tension is present; however, Malfoy is conflicted now. Harry knows it like he knows the Dursleys, like he knows how to fly. If there is anything Malfoy likes more than power, it's privileges. And he is pretty sure this counts as a privilege.

"And what does 'my silence' entail..?" he asks, his tone slick and sugary. Hermione makes a good show of not gagging.

"You will not speak of this this to anyone other than us. That includes other forms of communication such as implying, writing it down and other forms." she summarizes quickly. There are only a few hours left until morning.

Malfoy looks ready to play coy, but even _he_ must know that this was neither the time nor the place for it.

"Sure," he simply says. He is blunt and dry. "I just need assurance that you will not Obliviate me right after."

"Oh, that's easy-" Hermione and Malfoy perform a short ritual that Harry hadn't known either of them knew: The Magician's Vow.

* * *

They look for an entrance, Malfoy included.

"I'm sure that it's here!" Hermione exclaims, her features pinched and stressed. "I did a whole lot of research for this! We can't give up!"

"Shut your ugly mouth, dumb girl." Malfoy insults casually, making Hermione bristle in passive aggression. He gazes around the clearing of the hill. There are only endless trees.

"Oh _fuck_." he whispers, eyes bigger than plates. "We are so dumb."

"Huh?" Harry makes a confused noise at Malfoy. The Slytherin shakes his head in disappointment.

"We are in an _apple orchard_ " he explains, like it makes anything clear. "This is the most fertile tree, it's why it has so many big-ass apples. That means the Apple Tree Man resides in it."

"The Apple Tree _what_ now..?"

"Oh for _Merlin's sake!_ " Malfoy turns his scowling face to Harry, hands on hips. " _Potter._ He is a spirit. He is the guardian of the orchard. He fucks you up if you don't offer anything before passing the territory, _which we are on_. _Do_ catch up. Now, does any of you have something to drink? This one looks like an alcoholic but he'll probably accept anything at this point. So fucking pale."

They knew enough to understand that they were facing some kind of ancient gatekeeper. Hermione swiftly grabs her purse from her back pocket and takes out a vial of orange juice. "I like oranges." she says. Malfoy mumbles a series of words that are rather unflattering and Harry hopes Hermione doesn't hear.

With Malfoy's guidience, Hermione pours all the contents onto its roots.

And suddenly, there are some knocks coming from inside of the bark. The outer layer dissolves and the dust forms into a man-like creature.

"Facinerious beings!" he yells, first thing. "I'll tickle your catastrophe!" The outraged expression on his face might have been hilarious, had their situation been light-hearted. At last second, Malfoy steps in.

"Dear cabilero," he starts, speaking in that unique, pompous voice. "We have no intention to disfurnish you of your home. Let us pass through unharmed."

The man pauses in his shouts and stares at him, calculating.

"Such aweless youth. I do wonder… Thou art... an embossed carbuncle in my corrupted blood. Yet..." He stares some more and then sees the small puddle of orange juice. "Oh! A sweet meal at last!" He falls onto his knees, touching his lips to the surface and licking it straight from the ground. However wooden his entire body may be, it was still unbelievably repulsive. They make their way to the newly opened hole on the ground and peer into the dark below.

Out of the blue, a round staircase comes out of the walls of the tunnel.

"A sign of my gratitude," the Apple Tree Man says, still focused on the offering. "Thou art, hereby, dismissed."

They give slight nods to him as they walk down.


	6. Chapter 4: A Wee Bit Dangerous

"Fucking _hell_ , why is the mud so cold?"

"Malfoy, _we are in an underground passage. The Chamber is half-flooded. It is nearly Winter. We are literally underneath the Black Lake. Do_ catch up."

"You can't use my words against me, Mudblood."

" _I swear if you call me Mudblood_ _ **once more I will-**_ "

"IF YOU TWO DON'T SHUT YOUR CHATTER-BOXES RIGHT THIS INSTANCE I AM GOING BACK AND LEAVING YOU HERE." Harry cuts in on their argument. These two. If he had to pick a feeling for this moment he would choose 'one hundred percent _done_ ' without any hesitance. As if that Apple Man wasn't enough.

"Merlin's creeping moustache, I hate that hill. I hate that fucking wet grass, I hate that Voldemort knock-off tree, I hate that damned alcoholic Apple Man, I hate these stairs, I hate the Basilisk, I hate Slytherin for breeding that giant-ass snake."

"I take offense to that." Malfoy chimes in and _Harry just simply can_ _ **NOT**_ _deal with him at the moment._

"You better," he counters instead; the fire burning bright inside him is satisfied for now, even through the awful guilt he is feeling after venting this much. "How come the Basilisk doesn't leave any skin here? It was all over the place when we were down during second year."

"That is because Basilisks are classified as Self-Aware species," Hermione enlightens them. "They have much more control over their bodily functions, and that includes shedding the outer layer of their dead skin." She shrugs when Harry looks back at her, his eyes questioning. "I did a brushing up on them during our research."

"Say," Malfoy butts in, his sneer in place along with his suspicious glare. "You wouldn't have misplaced a book named 'Delving the Depths of Focus', would you?"

Hermione's eyes snap to him, "How would you know..?" she probes, direct. Malfoy's sneer level increases by an estimated 200.96 points.

"You _thief_ ," he accuses, almost tripping over a stray rock as he goes on. "You stole my _reserved book._ "

"Alright, _now_ I know you are lying," she calls him out. "I _always_ ask Pince if the books I have chosen are in a queue. She practically _threw it at me._ "

"Damn that harpy."

" _Damn you two._ " Harry says, trying to diffuse a soon-to-be argument _yet again._

"That's it," he decides and stops in his tracks. Hermione and Malfoy bump into his back. "I'm done. You guys are forbidden from talking until after we get outta here. That's it. Shh."

"Harry-"

" _Zipper's closed, Hermione._ "

"Pothead-"

" _Do I need to slit your throats?"_

"Harry, what is that noise?" Hermione interjects, breath hitching, fearful. They all stop. There is a consistent buzz in the air of the earthen tunnel, coming from the dark abyss.

And all of a sudden, the ground beneath them begins to crumble away into nothingness. They shriek all at once, thinking this was their end, but they are still standing. Harry opens his eyes with trepidation.

Huh. Stairs are still there.

Seems like Apple Tree Man was good for something. He'd better give him a large cask of apple cider for his kindness.

He tries to gaze into the blackness below them but no such luck. The tiny Lumos spell wasn't enough for the gigantic cave underneath the students.

Malfoy snarls, weariness showing in his slack face. "You two are useless tour guides. I'm gonna sue you once we are out." Harry laughs bitterly,

"You mean _if_ we get out."

"We _are_ getting out. Stop distressing our client, Harry."

"Why, yes."

"Stop doing that-" Malfoy flinches as if struck. "-It's creeping me out." He twirls his wand between his delicate, pureblood fingers. Casting an overpowered Lumos, the cavern beneath them is illuminated.

There is a round platform directly underneath, made of red stones and lined with mouldy moss, half-flooded in a small layer of sewer water. Harry sniffs a bit more carefully this time but there is no odor. It's as if there is an invisible wall separating them from the underground lair.

"Wait-" Harry freezes in a moment of epiphany, clearing out his mind. His feet are standing trembling on the earthen stair. He raises one foot, light and sluggishly, and gently lowers onto the empty space.

As he's expected, it's solid.

"I can still stand," he says aloud in wonder, enthusiastically searching out the other holes. Hermione and Malfoy stare with suprise on their features, leaning in to digest more of his observations.

"Maybe we are supposed to find the right hole to jump from..?" he mumbles to himself and Malfoy -who is closest to him- chokes on his spit.

"Potter-" He coughs, shocked to the core. "-you didn't just imply that we would jump down there, did you?!"

"What's wrong with that?" he asks in retaliation. "Hermione can easily cast an Arresto Momentum for us to fall safely. Or maybe she could cast Featherlight Charms on us-"

"WELL, IF YOU ARE JUST GOING TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF IT, I JUST MIGHT NOT," she shouts from a few feets away, crouching near one of the holes. "And anyway," she adds, milder now. "You should come check this out!" It's obvious she is only adressing Harry, but Malfoy doesn't get offended at that little quip so he gingerly heads towards her, following Harry's footsteps and taking care not to get mud on his expensive shoes.

They surround the hole that is so tiny that it could only be called a peephole. But it's noticeable that there is a steady exchange of air between the passage and the lair from it.

"I think this could be it," she says, hand clasping her chin thoughtfully. "Besides, it stinks and the smell is too awful for it to belong to anywhere but the place below us."

"Did you know that the Chamber is connected to the sewer system?" Harry offers, idly watching the two of them attempt to widen the opening. Malfoy tries an Engorgio, which -in theory- _could_ actually widen it if he cast it on the _blank space itself,_ but it does the opposite and makes it smaller. Hermione tries several well-placed Diffindos, however, they just cut through the dirt and it seems like there are no effects. Harry thinks brute-force would handle this problem quite well, _if only these two sophisticated idiots would let him actually cast it._

"You could miscalculate and make the tunnel cave in on itself-" His frizzy haired friend lectures, stern. "It is a huge risk! Too much to even consider!"

"For once, I'll agree with Granger. This is, so far, the most imbecilic decision you've ever had." Malfoy comments in the background, like a white noise which annoys you for some reason. "Have you ever heard of strategy? If you cast a Bombarda _now,_ this place would be our graves. If you cast it _after we are done,_ it could probably work."

"We could use Deletrius," Hermione begins mumble-storming. "Depulso also seems reasonable enough, Descendo does not seem proper for this kind of situation. Ebublio? No, too risky; why, we could make the whole of stairs dissappear! If I cast Epoximise, it would get rid of the air particules stuck in the earth but at what cost? Would just a banishment work? Expulso is used for large-scale areas, thus it would be disadvantageous of us to use it on such a small hole. We could transfigure it into ice and melt it with Incendio. We could- Oh!" She stops. She whips her head in a full circle and faces them , excitement shining in her eyes. "We have been focusing on the wrong component! Instead of the dirt, we need to disable the ward!" She brandishes her vine wand and strokes the dark, curling wood gently. Closing her eyes tight, she whispers inaudibly and a burgundy shine comes out the tip. The light dives into one of the wider holes. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be and it couldn't get past the barrier.

"Oh." she intones. Disappointed. Her dreams of grandeur half-buried in the mud she had been trying to overcome.

"Oh," Harry copies her, silently offering his symphaties. He pats her shoulder and shifts, bones and muscles aching from the constant crouching. "I think we need that Bombarda."

"Sure. I want to see how big it fails. Go ahead, Potter," The Slytherin leans back against the earthen wall. "Entertain us." Harry sneers him a Malfoy-styled one. As added accessory, flips a graceful middle-finger before he starts working.

"Plebian." Malfoy hisses under his breath, glaring venomously at his back. Hermione shots back a "Says the one who curses on an hourly basis," from the background.

The walls are just those. Walls. Made of dirt but still walls. Harry distantly remembers a Strengthening Charm to protect those. He questions Hermione on it.

"A Charm to enhance walls' durability? I believe I remember that one; however, I can not believe it did not pass my mind! It is actually used to empower Shield Spells but it is possible to cast it on objects in general! Let me see; uh-" She does a neat twirl with her wand and the air becomes almost electrical. "Fianto Duri!" Surprisingly, it works. Slytherin obviously left that out of the 'Spells to Watch Out For" list and hadn't thought that anybody would be suicidal enough to perform Bombarda.

He hadn't met Harry before, though.

" _BOMBARDA!"_ They all roar, wands drawn and pointed at the small opening.

An eardrum-shattering explosion blasts them away as they fall into the lightless cavern. Hermione flails a bit in the air, panicked, but takes control fairly easily. Just as she feels certain of their untimely death, she swiftly throws a well-planned out Arresto Momentum onto the group.

As they glide down the rest of the height, Harry gives Malfoy the middle-finger, yet again.

But as the group gently touches the surface of the round stone altar, Harry notices a figure in silhouette standing at a corner. In alarm, he raises his wand and his whole self stands taut and ready for a fight. But when the figure hesitantly reveals their identity, all he can do is stare in shock at the familiar red-head.


	7. Chapter 5: Betrayed

" _Ron_..?"

He takes a step back, dumbstruck. Hermione's breath hitches, eyes wide. Malfoy takes a defensive stance. But Ron... He hiccups miserably, tears gathering at the rims of his blue eyes.

"Ron? Ron! What's wrong?" Harry asks, concerned for his friend above all else. "Are you hurt? What are you doing here?" He steps towards him but Ron rises his wand, trembling like a taut bow string.

"Stay away, _AWAY!"_ he yells at them, face slack with despair and guilt. Malfoy frowns as the Weasley continues to keep the distance between them.

"What the hell, Weasel?!" he throws back. "You are betraying your friends? Can't say I'm surprised!"

"MALFOY!" Hermione is enraged, shivering in distress and glaring hatefully at the Slytherin of their search party. "You could shut your trap for once!"

"Yes, there is no need for arguments, guys." Harry tries to placate them. "Ron," he adresses this time. "Mate, what's going on? Please tell us, we will support you."

His best friend looked frozen, face blank of emotions despite his actions, eyes glassy through their tearful episode.

"Ron?" Harry repeats, afraid. Was Ron alright? Damn it, what was going on?! Was he-

-under Imperius?

"Ron? Why don't you answer? Come on, Ron. _Ron_ -"

"It seems our guests have arrived at last."

Their heads snap towards the voice in the darkness, gasping at the sudden appearance of the Headmaster.

"Professor Dumbledore," Harry says in relief. "Thank _Merlin_ you are here. What is-"

"DUCK!"

Harry falls on his bottom as a spells whizzes by him, tackled onto hard ground by Malfoy. When he looks up, he sees Hermione putting up a shimmering ward.

"What-What happened?!" he asks, confused. Hermione swishes her wand in a wide arc, sparkles spitting out and ending with a direct cut from her head to her midsection. A blast knocks away Ron and Dumbledore, as if blasted off by an explosion.

" _Dumbledore just tried to Stupefy you, you moron!"_ Malfoy snaps, standing up and fishing for his wand in his robe's pocket. The Headmaster rises gingerly from the sewer water, his unusually subdued expression grim. He absentmindedly casts a Drying Charm as his gaze takes them in.

Harry's hands are clammy and he shivers. He doesn't understand. In his mind, the recent events were replaying like in a telly. He doesn't undertsand why Ron is acting like a lifeless puppet, he doesn't undertsand why the old man is acting this strange, so unlike himself. It frightens him. This...

Why was everything so _twisted?_

"I see you young students are not willing to cooperate," the old man mourns, adjusting his half-moon spectacles. The tone of his voice is indulgent, no matter how his demeanour was. Harry could feel apprehension cave on him.

"Well, I assume I have nno choice but to use force..."

He gently lifts his wand, white as bone and like a spider's thin web string, and shoots a red jet of fizzling magic. It meets their protective dome and is instantly absorbed. For a moment, Harry is relieved. The spell hadn't reached them.

Then, suddenly, the ward dissolves. Malfoy curses and throws a ball of black fire at their opponent.

Dumbledore is, now, the enemy.

Harry tears his eyes away from the baby blue behind the glasses, anger and the pain of betrayal burns bright in his chest. He would defend himself to the very end.

Dumbledore swishes the fire away, as if it was nothing more than a tiny fly.

"I'm rather proud, my boy," he starts. It lights a new fire in Harry's chest; it's painful and hating. "It seems Lucius has thought you well. I feel sad, for you will not have the chance to demonstrate it to dear Severus."

"YOU STAY AWAY FROM SEVERUS!" Malfoy yells, voice strangled with anguish. "YOU WILL NOT HARM HIM! HE IS MY FAMILY!"

"Of course not," Dumbledore nods, indulgently. He prepares a black orb of darkness, mixing it with dark red and purple; the orb grows spikes and he hurls it towards them, the spiked ball growing bigger with each roll.

Hermione runs forward with a cry of war, flicking her wand in a spiral. The spikes go back into the orb, but it doesn't stop. Her eyes widen in fear.

"ACCIO HERMIONE!" Harry shouts, his friend pulled backwards through the air to them, out of the ball's way. Dumbledore closes his eyes, sighing exasperatedly.

"What do you want?!" Harry shouts at him, perplexed. He is furious but he still can't fathom why the Headmaster would do this. Then, with a cold wave of dread washing over him, he realizes they wouldn't be able to win against someone that experienced in duelling.

 _Fuck._

"Merely your cooperation for a quaint little ritual." He responds, smiling softly. The darkness of the tunnel behind him shadows his features, creating a sinister halo around him. Harry wants to back away, to run away from this monster who could smile at the prospect of murder. Tendrils of shadow begin creeping towards them and even Malfoy's Lumos Maxima can't compete with the shades, the light dimming to twilight.

Harry's heart beats out of his ribcage, breath coming out in short pants. His eyes dart around; he searches for the old man but the darkness obscures everything. His feets scuff at the damp stone of the altar.

 _Altar._

"Oh bloody-" He shakes his head in denial. "HERMIONE! RON! MALFOY!"

"HARRY!" comes Hermione's voice, as alarmed as him. "WE NEED TO MOVE TO THE WATER!"

"Damn you all," comes Malfoy's weary swear, and Harry feels something pull him to the side into cold water. He collides with another warm body. "Be grateful. You were about to become virgin sacrifices."

"Thanks," Hermione says, dry but sincere.

Harry tries to feel around for anything to use, but there is nothing but dirty water and small particles of sand.

"There is sand," he tells them. "Not much but yeah."

"We need to find a way to escape-" Hermione huffs. "-Lumos! Lumos! _Merlin,_ I can _feel_ the darkness trying to bash me. We have no chance of light."

"Maybe we do," Malfoy humms, contemplating. "There is Lumos Solis, it's said to be as bright as the sun."

"Oh, worm." She puts her input, sarcastically. From Mlafoy comes a confused sound, but he makes no comments.

"I can do it," Harry says and he can feel their eyes on him, even if he can't see them. "Among us, I am the most powerful." He says, and it's not wrong, and they all know it. It's a simple fact. "Hermione has a greater repertoire of useful spells and Malfoy probably knows a fair bit of Dark Arts. We still can't defeat Dumbledore-" He breaths in to calm himself, feeling the water chilling him to the bones. "but we can get past him."

Hermione agrees with a hum but Malfoy stays silent. Harry hears him swallow.

"I guess we can make this work," Malfoy accepts, at last. "I'm not gonna lie. This is _terrifying,_ Dumbledore is powerful, _too powerful._ We can't outwit him, we can't surpass him in power or knowledge. In every aspect, he is much more capable than us."

"That is why we are going to work together," Hermione interjects, standing up slowly and sending ripples across the surface. She holds Harry's shoulder and pulls on his hand. "Get up, Harry. We are too, Malfoy. We are going to live."

"What about Ron," he asks, voice shaky. He can't bear to leave his first friend behind. He wouldn't forgive himself if he let Ron suffer to save himself. "Aren't we going to rescue him?"

"Harry..."

"We can't leave him!" he exclaims, shaking his head as a refusal. "We can't!"

"Harry!" Hermione cuts him off. "We don't have the time! We don't even know where he is! We can't battle Dumbledore to get him back!"

"HE'S OUR FRIEND!" He shouts, tears escaping his eyes. "He's our friend, and that's reason enough to at least try!"

Malfoy doesn't make a sound, watching their argument. Hermione falls silent. Harry whimpers every now and then, trying to hold in his sobs. He can't – he _won't_ leave Ron to this terrible fate. He imagines Mrs. Weasley's face, miserable and mourning the loss of her son. He imagines the twins, Ginny, that stuck-up Percy, Bill and Charlie, Mr Weasley, and their crestfallen faces, going slack in shock and turning into anguished expressions. He imagines a world that doesn't have Ron and he can't comprehend it, because it's not possible for Harry to live in that world.

"Don't you think I know that, Harry..?" Hermione whispers, voice hoarse with pain.

Harry realizes with a jolt that she feels the same as him. Ron is their best friend, clueless but brilliant at strategies, quick to anger and influenced by bias but he cares about his friends and family. That is the Ron they know. Prone to jealousy but ready to accept his mistakes. He is insufferable, but he is dear to them.

"I love him as much as you do," she says, and from her tone, it's obvious that her words are genuine. "I love him as much as I love my own family. But you are important to me as well-" Harry's mind spins as she keeps talking. "-I need to keep you safe. You rescued me in our first year. That's probably not a good basis for a friendship but we made it work. I need to have you in my life. I need both of you in my life." She stops. "But if I had to choose between having both of you dead or having just you alive, I would choose to save you."

Harry couldn't speak.

"Okay," he simply says, for he can't think of anything else.

Hermione sniffs, and Harry notices she had been crying as well.

"Well," Malfoy awkwardly cuts in. "I suppose we are leaving here?"

Harry gives a wet chuckle. He hates Malfoy, he really does. But he can't help but want to save him too.

"Not to mention we have an, _ah,_ _ **extra package**_ with us," she adds, as if just noticing Malfoy there. He growls indignantly.

"Dumbledore will notice we are out of the altar soon," Malfoy says and the air turns somber again. "Potter is going to cast Lumos Solis but if this darkness persists, we will need a back-up plan."

"How about we Levitate ourselves?" Harry suggests. "And then we could put a Featherlight Charm on ourselves and then use Hermione's Point Me spell to find the way out of the tunnel."

"Seems fair," Malfoy approves. "We will put it into action. On the count of three."

"Three." Hermione starts the count.

"Two," Harry continues.

"One," Malfoy finishes and Harry shouts,

"LUMOS SOLIS!"


	8. Chapter 6: Reversed

As expected, the spell doesn't light up the cavern. Harry knows they should hurry with it before they're caught, and their chances are wasted.

"I told you," Hermione says with a smug air. Malfoy rolls his eyes,

"Potter, Operation 'Birds.'"

" _Merlin, I can't believe you named it 'Birds.'"_

" _ **I**_ can," Hermione counters. Harry half-agrees with her. He casts the Featherlight Charm over their group and feels the unexpected effects without warning.

"For _fuck's sake,_ _ **Potter**_ _,"_ Malfoy grumbles, swaying lightly. "This is why you apply that charm _after_ you Levitate yourself."

His bones feel weightless and he has trouble standing in the water, what with its discreet undercurrent. Every subtle little breeze feels as if it's out to topple him over.

"What about a Floating Charm then?" Hermione suggests but Malfoy is quick to put that idea down.

"Of _course_ _ **not**_ , Granger," he says, outraged. "Do you wanna be a balloon when you grow up? This is certainly a sure way to become one!" he spits out, mocking.

"Down, kids," Harry chides from the corner, trying to figure out how to swing the wand without falling into the sewer water. He decides to cancel out the Featherlight Charm first.

"Finite Incantatem," he mumbles, and he immediately wobbles, off-balance with his weight returned. For a tiny second, the darkness flickers.

"Quick!" Hermione whisper-shouts. "Before he comes back!"

" _Fuck,"_ Harry swears, later hearing Malfoy parroting him. "Malfoy, you do the Featherlight. I'll Levitate us. Hermione, Point Me." Since he had more power, it would be logical to carry the others. Hermione was more familiar with the Point Me spell, compared to Malfoy who had learned it a few minutes before. He was sure Malfoy wouldn't struggle with a spell as simple as Featherlight Charm.

Guess what _didn't_ happen.

"Merlin's _fucking_ smelly underwear," Malfoy was almost shouting at his wand. "WHY WON'T YOU WORK, YOU STUPID HAWTHORN STICK?!"

"MALFOY SHUT UP AND DO YOUR JOB! YOUR STUPID TREE STICK IS GONNA GET US KILLED!"

"OH, FUCK YOU ALL!" Hermione screams, surpassing Mrs. Black's voice in shrillness. "FUCKING _**HURRY,**_ YOU ABSOLUTE FUCKERS!"

Harry looks behind them.

The darkness shifts.

"FUCK THAT CHARM, I'M LEVITATING US!"

"POTTER, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?!"

"I HOPE YOU ARE GRATEFUL FOR THAT OPERATION TITLE, MALFOY!" Harry yells, hysterical and panicked. "CAUSE IT'S GONNA GET US OUT!"

"OH _**FUCK.**_ " Malfoy swears.

"Wingardium Leviosa!"

They ascend into the air and Harry does a barrel roll, facing back.

"AVIS!"

Hermione and Malfoy's eyes widen.

And then the sound of a million wings reaches them.

And then they know no more.

Harry, from behind his comfortable eyelids, senses a foreign and hostile ray of sunlight attacking his vulnerable retina.

" _Fuck you, sun."_ He offers as 'Good Morning' and the sun better appreciate that.

"Harry, _you absolute fucker."_

Harry shots up from his grass bedding and hits his forehead on a tree branch.

Sitting in front of him, is a fuming Hermione and a puking Malfoy. He realizes that their wands are hung on the same branch that had a dent in the shape of his head. They are... drying...

Bloody hell.

Hermione's wand has a scratch.

 _It has a scratch._

"Whoopsie."

" _What the fuck is 'whoopsie', Harry James_ _ **fucking**_ _Potter- "_

Oh _fuck._

In the span of half an hour, he receives the ass-kicking of his life and a scolding that has him wishing for Mrs. Weasley's Howler.

Not to mention Malfoy's silent treatment.

He never knew he'd rather the git talk than stay silent.

"It's most unfortunate," he says after being roughened up and sits by the river. "I couldn't give Apple Tree Man the apple cider."

" _What_ apple cider? You little – Wait. Potter. Are you _hallucinating?"_

"Uh- "

" _Don't you dare hallucinate on me, you fucker."_

"I'm not dying, Malfoy."

"Yes, a shame."

"And anyway- "Harry examines the place they've landed in. It's a dense forest with grey grass. The foliage is all white and dull mostly consists of white meadow flowers. The river Harry sits by is clear and running. There are distant sounds of crows' screeching. Malfoy and Hermione sit underneath the tree they've hung their wands. "-where are we?"

Hermione purses her lips, frowning. "We do not know," she informs. "But I think we are near the coast."

Malfoy's chest rises up and down peacefully, exhausted. His face looks free of animosity, limbs sagging on the soft land. He appears forlorn among the tall weed surrounding the area they'd landed into. Harry lifts his head to better study the tree they'd slumped against, and recoils at the sight of numerous birds gently crooning on the branches. They rest; the air around them is smug, comfortable and impenetrable.

Hermione's hair is frizzier than ever; her head and crossed arms are on her knees. Her defenseless back faces Malfoy's slouched form. Harry is sure the Slytherin, however childish he might be, would _exploit_ that miniscule display of trust, had he not been utterly drained.

Harry doesn't remember much of their escape from Dumbledore. He recalls fear and dread, trying frantically to bring their plan to success. He knows Malfoy had fucked up that Featherlight Charm, Hermione had been terrified out of her wits. Harry's improvised Avis, though...

He glances at the birds again, wondering how much power he would have to spend to cast another Avis in equal power without the boost from his panic.

"What happened...?" Harry asks, confused about the whole ordeal.

Hermione and Malfoy share a brief, mutual gaze and set their eyes on him. "Harry," Hermione starts. She is oddly reluctant. Had something terrible occurred?

"You passed out…"

"I gathered as much," Harry remarks.

"And then a snake wrapped around your fucking throat." Malfoy finishes for her.

Harry chokes.

"What the _heck."_

"It was _not_ a mere snake, Malfoy," Hermione admonishes. "He is leaving out the important part."

"Well, pardon my audacity, your Grace. But please fucking _explain."_

Hermione's face is sluggish with sleeplessness. She blinks like an uncaring cat, continuing despite her fatigue.

"It had Ron's school uniform. All ripped to shreds."

Harry's sudden intake of breath doesn't startle them. Hermione is quick to reassure him.

"Wait-No. That came out wrong. Harry, _it wasn't Ron."_

Harry, dog-tired from the abuse on his psyche, snarls like a wild werewolf. He kicks at the ground and grabs his bird-nest hair, pulling with vengeance. The flame burning, buried in his ribs, cries out in fury, demanding revenge and something to tear into. His eyes snap around, searching for a target to receive the result of his blind rage. Regarding a dead tree trunk carefully, he attacks the dry wood without any qualms. He pummels the hard surface. Teeth bared and panting with exertion, he doesn't realize it when the splinters get stuck to his hands. When he finally stops beating the dead tree, he absentmindedly checks them.

Harry balks at the sight of thin, red lines all over the delicate skin. Red covers his long and bony fingers, aching and itching with the needle-like pieces stabbed in.

"Harry- "Hermione reaches for his wrists, pulling them to herself. She tuts, the frown on her face making it clear what she thought of him mutilating himself to carelessly. "-The least you could do is learn a simple Healing Charm, no matter how small. It will surely benefit you greatly in a tight situation."

"Like now?" Harry asks drowsily. Hermione nods,

"Yes," She affirms. "Like now. Though, I would not have wanted to see you punish yourself in this manner."

 _Punish, huh._

Harry does not correct her. It is better to let her think what she wants to believe. It isn't like it would change anything if he _does_ , indeed, say _something_ about his temper problem. It is minor, compared to what they are going through right now. Even Malfoy, who he would usually love to annoy, doesn't deserve to hear his little, insignificant woes.

Hermione casts a neat Episkey, approving of her own technique as the skin knits itself together with minimal magic spent.

"Tell me what happened," Harry demands, voice shaking. He hates how weak he sounds. "Everything from the moment I… _fainted._ I don't want to be in the dark while we plan our next move."

Hermione seems to agree.

"It was not Ron," Hermione states, beginning the retelling of events. "It was a snake. It looked like a Boa, but that is irrelevant. It _carried a message_."

"A message?"

"Yeah," Malfoy steps in, continuing the story. "A letter. With the seal of New Moon."

"Ah- "Hermione chuckles nervously. "We have not come to that point in our research, Malfoy. We just had the time to form some theories for Enchanting."

Malfoy grumbles. "Sure, I'll give a crash course on the Moon Phases." He shifts for a better sitting position. "So, there are four main phases of the moon and a lot of in-betweens in the cycle but you two only need to learn a few to be able to come to your own conclusions; the Full Moon is the time in which you are most prolific. It's when the moon is at its full power. The New Moon is when it's dark, it's the time when you need to step aside and set new intentions. It's a time of starting anew and cleansing, it promises change.

"And I think you can guess just _who_ the letter was from."

"Huh."

"You don't, do you."

"Honestly? No."

"You are a piece of uneducated, oblivious ass-shat," Malfoy casually insults. "It's from the Dark Side. From the Dark Lord."

Harry feels as if a bucket of cold water was just poured on him.

" _What."_

"Malfoy, you are so insensitive," Hermione scolds. "Harry, calm down."

"I _am_ calm."

"Good."

She rolls open a scroll and Harry realizes that had been the letter Voldemort had sent all along. Hermione reads aloud,

"Harry, Draco, Miss Granger,

This letter was meant to arrive as soon as possible. If I was late then I hope, _for all our sakes_ , that you have escaped without harm.

Mosy, the snake that has delivered the letter, is an old acquaintance of Harry's, if my memory is correct. He has spoken highly of you, ever since I had rescued him from an early death. I believed a familiar face would be more welcome, rather than Nagini or one of my many servants.

The reason I have written to you three is that you are in deep trouble. Dumbledore has prepared a sacrificial ritual to restore his old friend, Gellert Grindlewald's power. Dumbledore, while his good intentions at heart, had made the mistake of visiting Grindelwald in his cell without proper supervision. The former Dark Lord, seeing his chance, broke his mind with continuous torture through the use of Legilimency. After each visit, he Obliviates the elderly wizard and implements fake memories of meaningless conversations. With time and dedication, Dumbledore was gone. In his place was a soulless pawn.

You _**must not**_ trust Dumbledore. He is long gone; the happy-go-lucky wizard you remember is merely an echo of the past, no more than a mere façade.

Unfortunately, my spy has heard of devastating rumors among Dumbledore's Order. He has informed me with haste and precision, without raising suspicion. Your friend, of the brood of Weasleys, was an instrumental in a Dark ritual meant to provide the Headmaster a warm-up for the next, greater one. As it also worked as a bait to capture you, or at least Harry and Miss Granger, he did not mind the loss of one sacrifice.

Unluckily for him, I had counter-plans. I transfigured my trusted companion Mosy into the visage of your friend, sending him to save the boy. You have no worries. There is no need to go back and rescue anyone. Mosy, as per his orders, will follow and guard you through your journey to the exit.

This letter contains an International Portkey, meant to send you to a place out of Dumbledore's reach. I will Apparate to the meeting location I told Mosy in three days of time. I hope you, Harry, are not too fatigued to speak Parseltongue. Mosy was most excited at the prospect of meeting you once again.

Take care. Be safe.

Tom Marvolo Riddle."

Silence reigned for a few moments, broken only when a surprised hiss reached Harry's ears.

" _Missster Harry Potter...!"_

Mosy had arrived. Harry had many questions.


	9. Chapter 7: Cracked

**Lmao guys this is so fun I just got my first ever flame :DDDD**

 **It was fun, thank uuuu!**

 **Also, sorry, I made a plot twist at the last second but everything will be explained in the future, as well as the reason Draco followed Harry and Hermione to the forest and the reason Harry and Hermione didn't go through the bathroom will be explained too! (In this chapter)**

 **On another note and because I feel the need to emphasize this, THIS IS BASICALLY CRACK. But because I can't write pure crack this is just a mixture and is rightfully called CRACK TREATED SERIOUSLY. So those who came here for heavy angst and other types, this ain't going to be like reading novel-length Harrymort fics. Hell, I DOUBT this is gonna be novel-length. Maybe I'll merge some chapters so it'll look more "hard-writing writer" style. Also, YES, the characters are OOC, especially Draco, because in this "AU: Canon Divergence", _Draco is like this. Hermione is like this. Harry is like this._ It doesn't make sense if you start reading and expect to find canon-approved content straightaway. But it works if you open this and expect nothing, just regular fanfiction. My mind doesn't make sense and the few times it does, it's weird anyways.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"There is _**one**_ thing worse than Dumbledore." Draco preaches in a fanatical fashion. He tears the post-it note off the board and-

" _ **Boom.**_ "

" _Fake."_

"Harry, _**NO**_ – "

Hermione slaps herself.

Draco's flowy, delicate fingers meet his temple. "It's _Fake Dumbledore,_ how _dumb_ can you get."

Harry narrows his eyes at the little ferret. "That wasn't a question," he reports, terse.

"I mean what I say."

" _He obviously has a puny pride,"_ Mosy pipes up. Harry shakes his head along with him, "That he does."

"I would hex you but I'm not into snake vore, so please refrain from secret conversations with your pet reptile."

" _I would swallow you whole if I could fit your gigantic head in my body."_ Mosy remarks without shame.

"Malfoy would cause indigestion," Harry informs. He isn't being petty, no Sir, of course not.

Neither is Malfoy.

"I would _**love**_ to Curse you," Malfoy hisses in pleasure, imagining it. "I'd _**die**_ for it."

" _Then perish,"_ Mosy commands.

"I will act like I do not know what he just said," remarks Hermione, naturally knowing the most obvious reply to the joke Malfoy had -unwittingly- presented to the Brazilian Boa Constrictor.

"I will _eat my foot_ if I find out Granger is a Parselmouth," Malfoy warns while heading towards the make-shift barrage on the river. "Don't suddenly develop uniquely Slytherin powers when I'm excluded, I want snake powers too!"

"If it is any consolation, Malfoy-" Hermione bites into her apple. "-I would trade it with you any second, had I actually _developed_ it."

"Thank you, Granger. You are my only ally in this lonely, despondent, fugitive world."

He suddenly freezes to a stop.

"Oh _fuck,_ " he mutters, eyes wider than his big head. "I'm a fugitive."

Harry blinks confusedly, "Malfoy, what-"

"You don't understand!" he exclaims in horror. "I'm a fucking _fugitive!_ It's like I'm Sirius Black! I won't have access to the Malfoy Ancestral Vault and I _certainly_ _ **won't**_ be the Malfoy heir now! Oh Merlin! Dad and Mom're gonna have another kid and disown me from the line and I- and I-" He falls silent.

"Any and all betrothal contracts will turn to dust," he continues in sheer wonder and awe. "I'M NOT GONNA MARRY THAT GREENGRASS BITCH!"

"Alright; Malfoy, deep breaths, calm down and most importantly, _what the fuck-"_

"Fucking _Potter,"_ he swears. "It means I don't gotta marry that clingy girl my parents wanted for me, I'll be able to marry a frickin' _muggle_ if I wanted to and I'll be able to become some silly Herbologist or even a librarian if I wished. And I won't have to go back to Malfoy Manor because it's so fucking _gaudy_ and-"

"I will have to cut you there, Malfoy," Hermione announces rather out of the blue. She lifts a second letter that had been attached to Mosy's collar. "But it seems the Dark Lord is currently residing in Malfoy Manor and we will probably Apparate there once we meet in the Turkish Ministry of Magic. You are out of luck."

Malfoy is hesitant, but only a few tiny seconds at most, as if he was sullenly contemplating his whole life. "…You're gonna tell my parents aren't you," he 'asks'.

"Yes, sorry," Hermione confirms and apologizes. "But it is too good of an opportunity to pass up. I, personally, would be _delighted_ to witness you being locked into a long, gloomy tower as if you were Rapunzel."

"Well, _excuse me,_ but Rapunzel was _kidnapped_ and I'm just gonna be grounded for the rest of my life."

"It _counts,"_ Harry insists. Hermione nods along. Malfoy slouches sadly, like a sad, shy and blond little fish.

* * *

"Why did y'all went out of your way to find some obscure entrance to a glorified snake pit anyway?" Malfoy asks, having gotten over his depression episode. Harry takes over the explanation, so Hermione could get some much-needed rest.

"Dumbledore had sealed the main entrance." He shifts slightly on the makeshift bridge they had built, trying not to fall off while crossing. "We didn't know if we could get his permission to open it, so Hermione just found a backdoor. "

"Yeah, it's nice and all but you still broke curfew," the Slytherin points out. Harry gives him the evil eye.

"Oh, _SURE,"_ Hermione utters, particularly loud. "AND _YOU_ DID NOT?"

"Malfoy, just go and pick those apples; I can't get further than this or it's gonna break down. You certainly _don't_ want to experience Hermione during her period."

"It had to hit _ **now,**_ " Hermione groans, mourning a peaceful afternoon. "Two months of freedom, and now it has come back for vengeance. My uterus thirsts for blood and agony."

Draco pouts and reaches for another red, shiny apple. Just as his fingers touch the fruit of Hermione's dreams, he is yanked by the hem of his robes. Yelping, his eyes grow wide; and upon looking down with haste, he realizes he's being abducted by a Fey spirit.

"HELP!" he begs the others, who are watching with horror and shock. "PLEASE! I CAN'T GO THERE AGAIN!"

"HOLD STILL!" Hermione shouts and shuffles, trying to get her wand. They had hidden them in her purse, because they had feared the Trace. However, it was crucial to save their new team-mate.

But now, it's no use. The toad-like creature starts to pull the Malfoy heir into the roots of the tree, its sharp nails taking hold of his thick clothing. Draco falls on his butt and squeaks. Trying to grab onto the soil and grass, he sends one last look of desperation to Harry.

Harry tiptoes carefully on the dam, cursing the poor architecture. He lifts his head to check Malfoy's state, but the blond has disappeared already, the glowing green eyes of the Fey is the only indication he's still saveable.

The spirit lets out a strange cackle, sounding like a drowning person. From the darkness of its burrow, Harry could see the numerous lethal teeth reflecting the dim light. It puckers its lips and makes some kissing noises; slowly fading into the deep, hidden tunnel, they can hear no more.

Hermione, now gaping in clear desolation, turns to Harry and blinks.

"We lost Malfoy," she says, confused. "We... he's gone now."

"Yeah," Harry answers. They are both in a fragile state of mind. Harry especially, right after the ordeal with Ron, has his feelings rubbed raw and pained. And Hermione, while seemingly clear-headed and focused, had had to make difficult choices to save their group. Malfoy may have been a nuisance to their lives but he had helped them when he didn't have to. And, appearantly, now they are on the same side against the puppet of Grindlewald.

There was no reason not to retrieve him back.

"We are going to take him back, aren't we?" Harry asks her. Hermione nods speechlessly.


	10. Ch 8: Shawty had 'em apple bottom jeanss

**So hi. I've been busy like WOW. You wouldn't believe it. I still acknowledge those reviews** **that are so confused (lol me too) I know that the plot is kind of hard to follow and irrational, but if you're curious about why Draco was kidnapped by Faeries, you'll get the answer next chapter, I promise.**

 **So far, the chapters have been largely influenced by my writing moods. Sometimes it seems extremely eloquent yet sometimes it's a literal shitstorm (yeah I'm aware) But seriously, I DO keep it in mind when I plan the new chapters' plot. Right now I don't have any future plans for this story- that are CONCRETE, at least. I love it though, and I'm not gonna stop just because a few are perplexed. Neither am I gonna make it a serious fic though because it's NOT. (Well, not usually.)**

 **I'm not sure where I'm going next chapter, so this is your chance to affect the plot. If you're interested you can PM me and we can talk about some vague things about how you want this to go. (Or which direction or which ships - 'cause I was a multishipper back in the day.)**

* * *

In the roots of the hollow tree trunk, lies a sunken ship in a cavern lit by blue.

"Oh," Hermione breathes out, delighted. "This..." she trails off, stunned by the beauty of such a mystical place, nearly outshining the experience of laying their eyes on Hogwarts' breath-taking sight for the first time.

They stand crouched in an elevated part of land just at the entrance, the ship's flag just reaching their height. Harry leans in and glances at the bottom; there is a shallow layer of water, shining in an ethereal glow with small particles of gleaming dust. It reminds him distantly of the Chamber, the recent memory burned into his mind's eye. He turns back at Hermione only to find her muttering animatedly to herself.

"Such magnificent species! The azure of their luminescence is powered enough to light up the cave just enough to let us see but not blind themselves or us. I wonder, do the Fey also benefit from these creatures? Or do they have some extraordinarily sensitive light receptors in their eyes-?"

"Hermione," he warns, grim. "Draco's waiting for us."

It surprises her. It's not a problem, it surprises him too. But the blond boy had merged with their little group so seamlessly, so suddenly that it left him a bit disoriented. He knows he wouldn't trust Malfoy with a wand and his back turned to him, yet he knows enough that he would never leave him to fend for himself where he is severely unmatched, against beings no one should meet.

He grabs the edge of the damp dirt, slowly making his way into the bright shine of the pond, sliding gracelessly downwards. Landing softly, he raises his head to call for his friend but then he is struck by a sudden sense of Deja vu, of having lived this before.

'Ah,' wanders into his mind. 'I remember. We went through this before, with the tree and the Chamber. Once up, then down. Then up, now down.' Brown turns into caramel as Hermione gazes into the blinding abyss beneath them. He knows she is bright, brighter than most who have graced Hogwarts' marble, solitary corridors. He knows she will find some way to impress the Queen and ask for Her favour. And he knows her enough that even if they ultimately fail, they will come out victorious in some way.

"Voldemort won't be too happy to hear we're ditching him, will he?" he asks, not expecting any response. "He'll probably send an army of Basilisks just so we can die with that secret."

"He would not," Hermione remarks, sure. She slowly inches closer to the surface of the water, the shine reflecting on her uniform and creating a blue halo befitting a Ravenclaw, surrounding her frizzy head. "He seems like a man who keeps his promises, despite his past wrongdoings."

At long last, she lets go of the mound of earth she has been grasping and drops into the glowing pond, splashing cyan tinted light droplets around. Her outfit is wet until her mid-thighs.

Glaring into the darkness shrouding the path ahead, she whispers, determined, "Let's get going."

Reaching a hand towards him, Harry looks up to her face, seeing tears held inside her eyes, waiting to be unleashed any moment.

"Alright," he accepts, taking the hand and drawing circles on her wrist, trying to soothe her nerves. Going a step further, he wraps an arm around her rigid shoulders; at that instant, it's ridiculously easier to breathe. The air goes through their lungs better, the physical comfort supporting them like the pillars of a structure. Harry keeps her up and Hermione walks in the oddly textured liquid they've landed in.

Harry notices it now. It behaves like water, yet it's like moving in a bowl of honey. With each step further into the deeper tunnel, the pond becomes more stubborn, pulling at their legs and holding them back. Harry knows it's not so bad at all, yet every count of shallow breath and each thump of his heart, loud and unsettlingly trembling in his barely-held-together ribcage, tricks him into thinking he has arrived at the doors of Underworld.

"Harry...?" Hermione mutters, hesitant. "Do you hear those hushed voices?"

"What voices," he asks, eyes narrowed. Keeping an eye out for anything that might jump, he glances around the tiny cave.

There really is nothing noteworthy to remark on; except a low buzzing in the damp, chilled air. He grips her uniform tighter, worried.

"They whisper," Hermione mumbles, staring at her feet as Harry drags her deeper. "They say it's hopeless. That Draco is forever in their possession."

"Well, what do they know? We aren't leaving without that idiot. Not after that Ron scare."

"No," she snarls, throwing him off by the sudden shift in demeanour. "They say he's not human anymore!"

"But that's not possible, is it," he inquires, concerned for the state of delirium his friend has delved into. "Surely even magic couldn't change something like that? Transforming him into… one of those?"

"Magic is might," she chants, unhearing. "One is a lie and two is a truth, three is betrayal and four is a royal, five hides behind a crown while six swallows a toad, seven-"

"Hermione," Harry calls, desperate. "Come out! Stop it!"

She sags down, holding onto his arms. "Harry," she begins. "I'm sorry. I tried to listen so badly that I almost fell for that trick. Don't listen. Their voices kill."

"I won't let them get us both. Come on, let's get up and go."

* * *

It's the thorny leaves and the heavenly light rays that guide them to the ring of mushrooms.

"No, Harry-" She pulls on his arm, trying to break the effect of the magic from his person. "-You can't enter the circle! It's the rule; if you enter, you'll never leave."

"Maybe I will," he mumbles, enthralled with the ethereal beauty of the azure sky. All around them are the mature scent of ripe, juicy berries; tempting smells of Butterbeer and creamy chocolate. "How would you know? We can rest just a bit; the water was hard to wade through."

Hermione nearly rips out her curling hair from the sheer irritation. Harry's being stubborn to the marrow of his bones, yet it was nothing in the face of Hermione's own grit.

"I'll tie you up, Harry," she vows. "I swear to you if you do not stop right now, I'll spell you faster than Professor Snape gives out detentions."

Harry hears none of this, moving along with the sublime spell that beckoned him out of the grassy path.

Hermione sighs, "Oh dear."

What's to be done about that?

A few minutes later, a frazzled Hermione steps out of the dense shrubbery. Across her shoulders lies Harry, asleep with adoring dreams of treacle tart and soft songs. They (Uh, she) move as quickly as they can manage to, with the distractions at the roadsides.

At the end of the stone-paved road is an ancient, grand door made of oak. On its wood surface, carvings of depictions are presented with startling clarity. It's like looking into a memory.

Hermione wakes Harry up with a flick of her wand. When he falls down with a sudden yelp, she continues watching the intimidating doors.

"How fascinating," she breathes out, moving a hand to caress the aged wood just a few inches away from her. As she's about to lay her skin, a groaning creak sounds above them. They both snap their faces up, flinching at the hinges' noise in the silent forest. The doors open languidly, threatening. They can't help but swallow when they pass the entrance to the darkness.

When their eyes get used to the dark, they realize where they are. It's the middle of a dimly lit hall, with seats like in a church and a high throne up ahead. Whenever they blink, there seem to be shadows of creatures seated at these.

An abyssal, otherworldly demand breaks the quiet;

"What is your bargain?"

It shakes the foundations of the building and makes their bones tremble. There is something terrible hidden just behind the polite façade of the shadows. Harry feels an ominous shiver run up his spine. They have nothing to trade for Draco, other than themselves.

Harry knows it's hopeless to hope for the best. Maybe he can be useful for once, benefit someone in dire need?

He prepares to offer himself but is interrupted. The heavy oak doors blast open without much grace.

There, with his back to the enchanted light, stands the Dark Lord. Stepping inside self-assuredly, he cleans his throat before starting his sentence.

"Greetings," he brushes off, lips tight and eyes narrow slits. A sigh of exhaustion chases him. "I believe I have something of exceptional value you might be interested in, in exchange for these youngsters and the one and only Draco Malfoy."

* * *

 **I still don't know what that "something of exceptional value" is and at this point I'm afraid to ask my brain what it is.**

 **So this is where I've been stuck. If you'd like you can either PM me your idea or just leave it here in a nicely bundled review.**

 **Cheers ;D**

 **-Int.**


End file.
